S B 



t 



-i — 



DEPARTMENT OE AGRICULTURE. 

SPECIAL REPORT— No. 18. 






TK\-l!l!LT|i|IE AS \ l>llllll\IILK \m\\m l\'lll<STIIY. 



WILLIAM SAUNDERS, 

SUPERINTENDENT OK OAKDENS AND GROUNDS, DEPARTMENT 
OF AGRICULTURE. 



READ BEFOKB 



THE NEW YORK HOKTICULTUIIAL SOCIETY, 



ITS MEETING IN NEW YORK CITY OCTOBER 7, 1879. 



WASHINGTON: 

GOVERNMENT PRINTING OFFICE. 
1S70. 




Book ■ 3"^j: 



" DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE. 

SPECIAL REPORT— No. 18. 



TEA-CL'LTUItE AS .\ l'lllli!.\l!LE AMEIIIU.W I\DIJSTIIV. 



CI? 



WILLIAM ""SAUNDERS, 

SUPERINTEXDKNT OF GAKDEXS AXD GROUNDS, DEPARTMENT 
OF ACrRICULTURE. 



HEAD BEFORE 



THE NEW YOPiK HORTICULTURAL SOCIETY, 



AT 



ITS MEETING IN NEW YORK CITY OCTOBER 7, 1879. 



^VASH1N(;T()N; 
GOVEIIN3IENT I'lMNTI^G OFFICE. 

1879. 



of'J' 



By traoftf*" 
i;.N 13 190S 



r\' 



TEA-CULTURK AS A PROBABLE AMERICAN INDUSTRY. 



Tea lias been used by tlie Chinese from remote antiquity. It is related 
that it was in general use in China about the year (U)(), and that it was 
introduced into Japan early in the ninth century. 

The tirst introduction of tea into Euroi)e is chiimed for the Portuguese, 
who, about l~ul, commenced a reguhu- trade with China. In l()<i4 the 
East India Company had about 2 pounds of tea sent to En^^land as a 
present to the Kin^-, which wouhl indicate that the article was cousid- 
ered a rarity. It had, however, been introduced into En<>;lan<l previous 
to this, for, in a newspaper in the British Museum, dated Xovend)er 23, 
1051, is found the following advertisement : " That Excellent, and by 
all Physitians approved, China Drink, called hy Chineans Tcha, by 
other nations Tay, alias Tee, is sold at th<' Sultaness Head, a Cophee- 
house in Sweetin<;s Pents, by the Poyal Exchange London." Pepys also 
mentions in his diary, under date September 25, lOGO: " I did send for 
a cup of tea, a Cliina drink, of whicli I liad never drank before.'' Again, 
in 1<)()7, he further alludes to it, and by this time he had introduced the 
herb into his (»wn house, for we find the entry thus: '' Home, and there 
find my Avife makino- of Tea, a drink which Mr. Pelling;, the ]»otticary 
tells her is good for her cold." 

For nearly twelve centuries the world's sui)i)ly of tea was furnished 
by China and Japan. 

The tea-i)lant, Theaviridls^ is a native of Asia, but it has not been 
found in a really wild state except in Upper Assam. Although the vast 
Empire of China has not been so thoroughly explored by botanists as to 
warrant the assertion that it is not growing wild in some portion of that 
countiy, yet it has not been found there excei)t in a cultivated state, or 
as having evidently escaped from cultivation in stray plants found on 
roadsides and waste places. 

As far as ascertained, the tirst announcement of the tea-plant being 
indigenous in Assam was made in 1823 ; but owing- to imperfect speci- 
mens of the shrub having- been forwarded to botanists, it was not con- 
sidered to be a true si)ecies of te.i. This was not fully demonstrated 
until 1S;{5, when the plant, with perfect tlowersan<l seeds, was obtained, 
which proved it to be a genuine tea, very closely allied to, if not iden- 
tical with, the tea of China, the exclusive source of all the varieti«'s and 
shades of the teas of commerce. 

The discovery of the tea-plant in Assam led to the supposition that 
its culture and maTuifacture could be made a jn'ofitable imlnstry in that 
country. Conseiiuently, in 1831), a Joint-stock company with a largo 



4 TEA-CULTURE AS A PROBABLE AMERICAN INDUSTRY. 

capital was formed in London for bringing the tea-forests of Assam, as 
they were called, into cnltivation. In 1840 they commenced operations, 
on a very extensive scale ; extravagant expenses were incnrred nnder 
the idea that tlie profits of tea-cnlture would be so great as to render 
any attempts at economy altogether unnecessary. ■• 

This company, having by reckless management thrown away one 
million of dollars, was brought to the verge of bankruptcy. Better 
counsel and more economical management having prevailed, the success 
of the enterprise was subsequently established. The teas manufactured 
from the Assam plant were at tirst rejected by the London brokers, but 
more care having been given to the manipulation of the leaf, and to 
other processes of manufacture, the product brought higher prices than 
the finest Chinese teas. This gave an impulse to the new industry in 
Assam, which soon spread to the Himalaya slopes and to other parts 
of British India. 

The unfavorable reports made upon the earlier samples of Assam teas 
wSuggested the propriety of introducing the Chinese i)lant 5 accordingly 
tons of seed were secured and large plantations were formed with the 
plants raised from these importations. Thousands of plants were also 
shipped from China for the same purj^ose, all of which is now much re- 
gretted, as the true Assam plant is said to furnish a better class of teas; 
the plant is also more prolific and amenable to culture than are the 
plants from Chinese. varieties. 

Botanists who consider that the Assam tea is a distinct species have 
given it the name of Tliea Assamica^ to distinguish it from the Thea 
vindis, the Chinese species. There are others, however, that recognize 
only one species, and hold that the Assam j)lant is the wild type of the 
Asiatic tea, and that all the plants under cultivation are but varieties 
caused by climate, soil, and special culture. 

Planters distinguish many points of difference between the Chinese and 
the Assam plant. The Assam grows much quicker than the Chinese 
plant ; this renders it more profitable, as it affords a greater number of 
pickings during the growing season. When full grown the leaf meas- 
ures 9 inches or more in length. The leaf of the China plant seldom 
exceeds 4 inches in length. The Chinese plant is much hardier and will 
succeed at higher elevations than the Assam ; it is also more prone to 
produce seed, which is injurious to its value as a leaf-producer. The 
leaf of the Assam plant does not harden so quickly during growth as 
that of the China, which is an important consideration in picking the 
leaves, and, finally, the teas made from it are superior to the Chinese. 

It is said that most of the Indian plantations are composed of crosses 
between the Chinese and the Assam ]jlants, so that no plantation is 
wholl.>- made up of the indigenous kinds, but it is conceded that the 
nearer each x)lant approaches to the indigenous, the higher is its excel- 
lence, and tliat it would have been better had China seed never been 
introduced into the localitv. 



TEA-CULTURE A.s A I'JfOHAl'.LE AMERICAN INDlrSTRY. O 

The Indian tea now sells from 12 to 25 cents per ponncl higher than 
the Chinese. Tlie ini|»orts of Indinn tea into (5reat liritiiin tor the year 
1877 was :U,8S2,00(> pounds. 

I have introduced so much concerning the Indian operations, because 
it is to India that we nnist look for exani])les to be followed in our efforts 
here, rather than to China or Japan, as will be further noticed. 

With regard to the introduction of the tea-plant into the United States, 
the earliest notice which has come under my observation is contained 
in the following extract taken from the Southern Agriculturist, i)ublis]ieij 
in 1828: 

I liiul fliaf the tea-tree grows perfectly well in the o\n'n jiir near Charleston, where it 
has been raised for the last fifteen years at M. Noisette's nursery. Tea, as exi)orted 
from China, would cost too much in the jireitaration. for each leaf goes through a par- 
ti<'ular process there. But, as this is probably done with a view of economizing room 
and i>reserving its freshness in tlu^ long sea voyage to which it is exposed, we might, 
in raising it as a crop, use it and exjtort it. at least n(uth wardly, dried in the same 
iiiauner as senna or hops. 

This suggestion about drying the leaves for transportation has recently 
been revived. It is not improbable that the dried leaves, pressed iu 
cakes, may become au article of interior commerce, aiul be subjected to 
the roasting process like coffee just previous to use, a method which 
would increase the aroma, if found practicable in ordinary domestic 
practice. 

Auotlier historical effort to introduce tea-culture into this country was 
made about 1848, by Juuius Smith, at Greenville, S. C. Although com- 
menced with some degree of enthusiasm the plantation never was in- 
creased to any extent, neither was it ever brouglit to a condition, as far 
as can be ascertained, to warrant tlic formation of any reliable opinion 
as to the practicability of the culture of tea; nevertheless, the circum- 
stance of the failure is often quoted as a proof that tea cannot be growu 
protitably in this country. It is safe to say that as a test of tea culture 
the effort was of uo value whatev^er, and never was so considered by those 
conversant with its management. 

During the year 1858 the United States Government, through the 
Commissioner of Patents, ordered and received about 10,000 tea-plants 
from China. These were transported in Wardian cases, tlie cases being 
filled with soil, in which the seeds were sown just previous to shii)ment. 
These vegetated during the voyage, and the i)lants averaged 18 inches 
iu height when taken out of the cases in Washington. 

The.se plants were immediately placed under i)ropagation, and in a 
short time the stock was increased to .S(),()00 i>lants, wliich were distrib- 
uted throughout the Southern States. The propagation and dissemina- 
tion of tea-plants formed a prominent feature in the oi)erations of the 
AgriiMiltural Division of tlie Tateut Ollieo until tlie commencement of 
tlie war, wliich put a sjtop to sucli comnmnications I'or several years. 

The Department of Agricultiu-e was organized during the year 18G2. 



6 TEA-CULTURE AS A PROBABLE AMERICAN INDUSTRY. 

For some time after its establishment but little attention was given to the 
propagation of the tea-plant; still, it was at no time entirely abandoned. 
It was fully understood that, so far as the growth of the plant was con- 
cerned, it could be successfully cultivated over a large extent of country; 
but, iibaring in the belief that the amount of manual labor^required in 
the manipulation ami preparation of the leaf (as practiced in the oldest 
tea-growing countries, and which was considered to be indispensable) 
was so great as to preclude the idea that we conld compete with the 
•low-waged Asiatics, no special efforts were made to disseminate the 
I)lants, or to increase them further than to supply such applicants as 
desired to make experimental tests. 

Meanwhile the progress of tea-culture in British India was Avatched 
with interest ; the successful results of improved methods of manufac- 
ture, and the introduction of the various labor-saving processes which 
were being made from tiuie to time by the planters in that country, sug- 
gested the probability that the production of tea might be made a 
profitable industry in some portions of this country where labor-saving- 
appliances usually followed closely upon the knowledge of their neces- 
sity. 

Consequently fresh supplies of seed were imported from Japan, which 
resulted in enabling the Department to disseminate many thousands of 
plants. These efforts were materially enhanced when, about 1867, it 
was found that an abundance of tea-seeds could be procured in some of 
the Southern States from the idauts which had been distributed from 
the importation of 1858. 

For several years after 1868 the Department distributed annually 
from 5,000 to 10,000 plants, reaching in 1876 to over 20,000 plants. By 
this means it was expected to popularize the culture of tea as a domestic 
product, with the hope that public interest would in time be directed to 
its cultivation as an article of commercial value. 

Encouraged by reports of successful culture, which were in many in- 
stances supplemented by samples of manufactured tea of undoubtedly 
good quality, more decided and energetic efforts Avere made towards 
establishing this industry, and during the past two years more than 
100,000 tea-plants have been distributed, and the Department has under 
l)reparation at the present time at least 120,000 plants which will soon 
be read}' for dissemination in localities where they are most likely to 
succeed. 

The cultivation of the tea-plant is as simple as that of a currant or 
gooseberry, and when cultivated for its leaves it soons assumes the ap- 
pearance of a low-spreading bush; although, if left to its natural pro- 
clivities, it reaches the size of a slender tree from 15 to 20 feet in height. 

Tea-plantations are established in a similar manner to those of other 
economic plants. The uncertain method of trying to secure a uniform 
j)lantation by droi)ping the seeds at the spots in the field where the 
plants are to be permanently located is sometimes adopted, but the 



TEA-CULTURE AS A PROBABLE AMERICAN INDUSTRY. 7 

most satisftictory mode of establishing a plantation is to sow the seeds 
in nursery rows, and when the plants are of sufficient size they are re- 
moved and planted in their permanent sites. They will reach to a 
height of 8 to 12 inches in one year, and are then strong enough to bear 
transplanting. It may be mentioned that the seeds require to be cov- 
ered with about one inch of soil, and shaded from the sun. This is 
absolutely necessar3', otherwise the young ])oints of the i)lants shrivel 
up as soon as they emerge from the soil. After various attempts we 
find that a covering of short hay spread rather thicldy over the seed- 
bed is the best protection ; the young plants gradually push through 
this covering as they grow. 

T^e best soil for tea is a deep rich loam, such as is found in our best gar- 
den soils. I am convinced that the soil cannot well be too rich for i)rofit- 
able culture of tea, provided it is properly underdrained. Any attempts 
to grow it ou poor soils will result in absolute failure, so far as profit is 
concerned. 

The plants are usually placed in rows which are 4 to 5 feet apart, the 
same distances being allowed between the plants in the rows. For con- 
venience of culture I would prefer placing the rows feet apart, and the 
plants 4 feet from each other in the rows. For the first two or three 
years some crop, such as potatoes, may be planted between the rows, 
and probably higher growing crops, such as corn or cotton, might be 
grown, the shade and shelter thus obtained being favorable to the 
growth of the young tea-plants. 

Even under the most favorable conditions for growth no leaves should 
be gathered until the foiu'^ year from planting. Picking the leaves for 
tea has a tendency to weaken the plants, hence they should be robust, 
healthy, and well established before picking commences. Much of suc- 
cess in the management of a plantation depends upon the discrimination 
used in picking lightly from weak plants, or in passing them altogether 
for a season, thus enabling them to acquire additional strength. 

The pruning of the tea-plant is also of some importance. During the 
])eriod of preparatory growth, that is, during the first five years, an an- 
nual insi)ecti()n should be given the jtlants in early winter for the pur- 
pose of cutting back all strong shoots that seem to impair the shape of 
the ])lant, the object being to secui'e a bushy, much-branching habit, 
which is favorable to producing the greatest (piantity of the most desir- 
able kind of leaves. 

Whenever a plant becomes weakened by the periodical removal of 
leaves, it can be restored to vigor by thinning out many of the branches, 
and cutting the whole of them quite close down during winter. This 
will be followed by a more vigorous growth the following summer, which 
should not be checked bj^ picking any of the leaves, or otherwise retard- 
ing the growth during the season, thus increasing the root-growth for 
futme exteufsion of shoots and leaves. 

^^'llell the plants have gained a proper size to furnish a crop, and the 



8 TEA-CULTURE AS A PROBABLE AMERICAN INDUSTRY. 

young slioots have expanded a sufficient quantity of leaves, the leaf- 
pickers commence work ; an operation which is thus described : 

Each individual has a basket slung at the back, and with both hands 
speedily strips the shoots of the leaves required, taking care not to 
injure the auxiliary buds, as they have to yield the next crop. The 
leaves, as collected, are thrown over the shoulder into the basket. A 
good picker will sometimes collect 50 pounds of green leaves in a long 
day's work, but the average is about one-half of this. Four pounds of 
green leaves make about one pound of manufactured tea. The earliest 
spring pickings make the best teas. These yield the famous Young 
Hyson. At this period the leaf is veiy thin, having a large proportion 
of juices as compared with the solid matter, and is dried of a greenish 
color, retaining a most delicate flavor. This grade of tea seldom reaches 
distant markets, as it speedily ferments if put up in masses for ordinary 
shipment, and can only be conveyed in small quantities by land routes. 
This superior article may be said to be unknown in this country, and it 
is one of the luxuries in store for us when tea-culture becomes one of 
our industries. 

After this first gathering the plants will soon again be covered with 
young leaves, especially if moist weather prevails. A rainy season at 
this period is of the greatest value, and in its absence irrigation may be 
introduced with the best results. Copious rain-falls during May and 
June insure an abundant croi), and characterize a climate well adapted 
for the culture of tea. The pickings continue more or less during the 
season of growth ; they are influenced bj^ rain-fall, condition of soil, and 
heat. A rich soil, where the rain-fall is copious, will further the growths 
so as to aftbrd from 16 to 20 pickings during the season. Sometimes 
the conditions will be such as not to produce the half of this. 

With regard to climatic essentials, the tea-plant will withstand a zero 
cold without material injury, but it is most profitable in climates where 
the thermometer seldom shows more than or 8 degrees below the freez- 
ing point. Teas are made in much cooler climates, but the growing 
season is too short for producing many profitable pickings. But by far 
the most important climatic condition is the amount of rain-fall. A dry 
climate is altogether unfit for tea-culture. A hot, damp climate is best. 
The rain-fall in the most profitable tea- districts of India is from 80 to 
100 inches per animm, and the more of this that falls in the spring 
months the better. It is doubtful whether tea can be profitably grown 
in this country in any district where the rain-fall is below GO inches per 
annum ; and that, too, must be pretty equallj^ diffused over the spring 
and summer months. Where irrigation can be systematically intro- 
duced, the rain-fall is of less importance. 

The manufacture of tea as at present conducted is a very particular 
operation. Much of supposed value of the article depends upon the 
uniform accuracy with which the various processes are conducted. It 
is said that the value of teas is fixed after they are delivered to the 



TEA-CULTUKE A« A riiUBAHl.K AMKUICAN INDUSTRY, 



y 



brokers, and that the character of the article from the same phintatiou 
is far from beino- uniform from year to yrar. This is moi-e ])arti(;iilarly 
the case with tlie (Miiiiesc teas, and is hii-^icly attributed to tlie routine 
natnre of the methods employed, as coiitrastiMl witli s])ecific and exact 
systems. 

Tiie planters in India soon discovered tluit they could not profitably 
follow the various minute processes and details practiced by the (I'liinese, 
and they set themselves to study the philosophy of the whole subject of 
the preparation of the tea-leaf for market. The result has been that 
many ojx'rations whicli were formerly considered necessary have been 
much reduced. Instead of following a Chinese method which involved 
twelve operations occupying three days, the best teas in India are made 
by five operations which are completed in two days. 




The method of picking the leaves and the routine of manufacture as 
practiced in India, is described as follows : 

Referring to the diagram which represents a young shoot, the grades 
of tea manufactured from the diftercnt aged leaves are thus name<l: a, 
Flowery Pekoe; 6, Orange Pekoe; c*, Pekoe; d, Souchong 1st; e, Sou- 
chong L'd ; /, Congou. ^lixed together, «, b, e, Pekoe ; a, b, c, d, e, Pekoe 
Souchong. 

If there be another leaf below /, and it be taken, it would be Hohea. 

Fine tea can be made of the young succulent leaves oidy. The younger 



10 TEA-CULTURE AS A PROBABLE AMERICAN INDUSTRY, 

aud more sacciilent the leaf the better tea it makes. Thus a will make 
more valuable tea than &, b than c, and so on ; e is the lowest leaf to 
make tea from, for, though a very coarse kind can be made from /, it 
does not pay to take it. The stalk also makes good tea, as far as it is 
really succulent, that is, down to the black line just above Ihe figure 2. 

The value of tea is increased Avlien it shows Pekoe tips. Only the 
leaves «, &, make these. Tliey are covered with a fine silky whitish 
down, and if manufactured in a particular way make literally white or 
very pale yellow tea, which, mixed with ordinary black tea, show as 
Pekoe tips. In ordinary leaf-picking these two leaves are taken with the 
others, but when manufactured with them they lose this white or pale 
yellow color and come out as black as the rest. 

The operations of tea-mauufiicture are classified in the following se- 
quence : 

1st. Withering the leaf; 2d, rolling ; 3d, fermenting; 4th, sunning. 
5th, firing. 

Now, to make the best quality of tea, each one of these processes is 
carried to a certain point aud no further. Unwithered or underwithered 
leaves break in the rolling, and give out large quantites of a light green- 
colored juice during the process. Tlie tea is much broken, and of a red- 
dish gray color. The liquor is very pale in color, weak, soft, and tasteless. 
Over withered leaf, on the other hand, takes a good twist in the roll- 
ing, gives out but little juice, which is of a thick kind, and of reddish 
color. The tea is well twisted and blacker than ordinary ; the liquor of 
an ordinary depth of color, but with a mawkish taste. 

There are several tests to show when leaf is withered. Fresh leaf 
squeezed in the hand, held near the ear, crackles, but no sound should 
be heartl from withered leaf. Withered leaf pressed in the [)alm of the 
hand retains the shape into which it has been pressed. The stalk of 
whithered leaf will bend double without breaking. Properly withered 
leaves are like old rags to lay hold of, and no further test, after expe- 
rience, than the feel of the leaf is necessary. 

The rolling of the leaves is for the purpose of twisthig them, and also 
for the removal of a portion of the juice. This, however, is said to de- 
tract from the value of the tea, and one of the reasons why India tea is 
stronger than Chinese tea, is that in India the sap or juice is generally 
retained, while in China it is allowed to run oft". The rolling is partly 
done by machinery, but finished by hand; but even when done solely 
by hand, an expert can finish .30 pounds in one day. Hard rolling gives 
darker colored and stronger liquor than liglit rolling. Hard rolling- 
destroys Tekoe tips, inasmuch as the juice expressed stains them black. 
These tips are the small unopened leaves which, wlien not stained, are 
seen in Pekoe tea as whitish or orange-colored particles or ends. Light- 
rolled tea has more of these tips than liard-roHed, but hard-rolled tea is 
blacker and better, with the exception that the color of the Peko tip is 
lost. 



TEA-CULTl'KK AS A rix'OHABI.K AMERICAN INDUSTRY. 1 1 

Wlicii tlie rolliiifi' is tinisluMl tlic tea is left in lomuled Wlls, which 
are allowed to remain for a time to feniieiit. The time allowed for fer- 
mentation is only leained by experience. There is no time to be fixed 
for the fermenting period. It is (piicker in warm than in cool weather. 
The fermentation is stopped by breakinu- n]) the ball and sprea<linj:- out 
tlie leaves very thin. 

It is then spread oat on mats exposed to the sun. This is termed 
the sunnino- i)rocess. It is turned over, so that the whole of it may be 
affected by the sun. With bright sunshine, about one hour's exposure 
is sufficient. It is then ready for the final process of firing. 

Until lately it was considered essential that the heat for the final dry- 
ing or firing the tea should be derived from burning charcoal. It was 
asserted that the fumes of charcoal were necessary to make good tea, but 
it is now settled that the only effect of heat is to drive all the moisture 
out of the roll, and heat from any source serves the purpose. 

The firing is done by furiuices, which are heated by any kiiul of fuel, 
and it is claimed that it has numy advantages over the old charcoal 
method. It is more economical, cleaner, and safer, in fact better every 
way, another evidence that tea- manufacture is not the mysterious, com- 
l)licated process that for centuries it has been supposed to be. 

After the leaves are quite dry and crisp it is called tea, the manufact- 
ure being completed for black tea. 

It is ])erhaps unnecessary to repeat that green and black teas are 
made from the same plant. The fact that in certain districts green tea 
is made exclusively, and in other districts only black teas are made, has 
been adduced in support of the supposition that the plants producing 
them are distinct. The reason is, that those who make black teas do 
not necessarily have the conveniences for the manufacture of green teas; 
hence certain localities will be occupied by green-tea manufacturers, 
and they confine themselves solely to that kind. Something will also 
be attributable to cliniate and soil; small leaved varieties of the tea- 
plant, and a rapidly elongated suc(;nlent growth, are best for green teas, 
and the Chinese tea-plants are better for green-teas than the Assam 
plants, which are of a more robust growth. 

In the manufacture of green tea the leaf is not withered or fermented, 
but as soon as the leaves are ])icked tlu-y are placed in pans which are 
heated to about UK) degrees Fah. Here they are stirred with sticks for 
about lb minutes, when they become moist and sticky. The contents 
are then removed from the i)ans and rolled for two or three minutes on 
a table until it gets slightly twisted. The leaves are then spread in 
the sun, and again subjected to a rolling process, which gives them a 
further twist ; they are then phiced in the pans as before and stirred 
with sticks until they beconu^ very hot, when they are stuffed tightly in 
bags, where they remain for 10 or 12 hours. They are then finished in 
the pans heated to KJO degrees, dropping to 120 degrees at the finish. 
This last panning re(piires from S to hours' constant stirring, for ui)on 



12 TEA-CULTURE AS A PROBABLE AMERICAX INDUSTRY. 

this depends the production of the green color. It is n hiborious oper- 
ation, and after all, depends simply upon the rapidity of the drying- pro- 
cess, and the absence of fermentation. 

The grade of tea called Flowery Pekoe in black teas is called Young 
Hyson in green, and that corresponding to Orange Pekoe in black is 
Gunpowder in green ; Pekoe in black is Hyson in green. Souchong in 
black is Imperial in green, and Congou in black is Twankay in green. 

There are numerous fanciful names given to teas, but the above is 
said to comprise all that are worthy of being distinguished ; all others 
are merely commercial distinctions. 

The iinest of all Chinese teas are those called Mandarin teas, which 
being but slightly fired and rather damp when in the fittest state for 
use, will bear neither transportation nor keeping. They are solely used 
in China. 

The flavoring of tea is also a well-known process, and is only applied 
to middling and inferior qualities of the article. Various odoriferous 
flowers are emploj^ed for this purpose. Orange-tiowers and the blossoms 
of jasmines are the favorites, although several other kinds are also used, 
such as the flowers of Gardenia florida, Olea fragrans, Magnolia fuscata, 
Clilorantlms ineonspicuotis, lUimim anisatum, and various kinds of roses. 
The process of scenting teas is described as follows : 

The tea is first jierfectly manipulated, dried, and ready for market ; 
40 x^ounds of fresh orange-blossoms are mixed with 100 jjounds of the 
dried tea ; after 24 hours the orange-flowers are removed by sifting. The 
tea is now strongly impregnated with the odor of the flower, but it has 
also absorbed moisture from the fresh flowers, which is now removed by 
drying. The scent increases after the tea is packed in cases. The length 
of time wbich teas thus scented retain their odor varies with the differ- 
ent flowers used ; some lose it in one year, others retain it for a longer 
period. 

Tea is adulterated in many ways; the green color is often imparted by 
heating and manipulating it with Prussian blue, gypsum, and indigo. 
Tea-dust is mixed with clay and manipulated into the form of the ordi- 
nary leaf and sold as lie-tea. Tea-leaves which have been already used 
are again rolled into shape and sold as genuine tea. The leaves of other 
plants are added to those of the tea-plant, and thus the quality is im- 
paired, or an undue proportion of stalk is added to the leaf, and the 
weight increased while its chemical value is lessened. 

The following substances, it has been stated, have been found in tea: 
Iron, plumbago, chalk, Cliinaclay, sand, Prussian blue, indigo, turmeric, 
starch, gypsum, catechu, gum, and the leaves of the camellia, elm, chlo- 
ranthus, willow, poplar, oak, elder, beech, hawthorn, and the wild plum. 

The active principles of tea are an alkaloid called theine and a volatile 
oil to which the flavor and odor are due, and which possesses narcotic 
and intoxicating properties. It also contains 15 per cent, of gluten and 
a stiU larger ijerceutage of tannin. A recent authority states that the 



TEA-CUJ>Ti;Jx'E AS A ^^lajJJABLH AMEKRAX INDlJfeTKY. 13 

effects of tea upon the human system is to increase the assimilation of 
food, both of the Hesh and heat-forminjj: kinds, and that, witli al)nndance 
of food, it i>romotes initrition, while iji the absvnce of snthcicnt food it 
increases the waste of the body. 

It is generally understood that much ol' tlu; manipulation ^iven to tea 
in Asiatic countries is directed toward httinf*" it for ocean voyages. For 
this transportation the leaves must be roasted befor<', shipment, and thus 
the aroma developed by liriny; is largely dissipated before the tea is 
used. It is an ohl saying- that the best teas are only to be had in their 
highest excellence in tea-growing countries, where they can be procured 
before they have been submitted to all the severity of the heroic ])roc- 
esses which they have to undergo before being- packed for long voyages 
in the holds of vessels. It may therefore, be found that, for home con- 
sumption only, a less elaborate method of i)reparation may suttice, and 
that, as already mentioned, the article may ent-er into domestic com- 
merce in cakes of dried leaves pressed into solid shapes, as is done with 
many other herbs, and the roasting, which developes the aroma, take 
place immediately before use, as is now done with coffee. Probably' it 
will ultimately be ground like coffee, to secure the most delicate bever- 
age. 

It will probably be many years before tea-culture will engage the gen- 
eral attention of farmers and jjlanters of this country. There are many 
reasons why this may be expected. The profits of the culture are not 
established ; the management of the plant and the proper a])plication of 
the processes must be for many years of a purely experimental charac- 
ter, and even where seemingly fair tests have been made, failures will 
occur, and although these failures may be traced to causes which per- 
sistent effort would overcome, yet where there is outlay aiul loss, accom- 
panied with some doubt as to ultimate success, the effort will in most 
cases be abandoned. 

Any attempt to estimate the i^rotits of tea culture in this (country 
would simply be futile ; this can onl^' be reached after we see the re- 
sults of actual and fairly conducted experiments. A writer from Florida 
rennirks that " we should grow our own tea, but we do not, and will 
not, unless something is done to promote an interest in the matter." 

It has been suggested that the United States Government could, at a 
comparatively snuill ct>st, materially assist in determining as to the 
feasibility of tea-culture, and the solution of the question of profit* 
What has already been accomplished by modern tea-manufacturers in 
the way of im})rovements upon the older Asiatic methods only suggests 
that still further innovations may be i)ossible. 

Seeing- that nuich of the care bestowed ujton the manufacture of tea 
is merely for the ])urpose of meeting- commercial exactions in regard to 
the ai)pearance of the article, it maybe, that, by ignoring- mere ap])ear- 
ance, an equally good beverage may be produced by an entirely differ- 
ent system of preparation of the leaf. Of this 1 have strong hopes. 



14 TEA-CULTURE AS A PROBABLE^ AMERICAN INDUSTRY. 

We procure the essential virtues of other herbs without subjecting 
them to such complicated processes, which, after all, are mainly to pre- 
vent the leaf from molding- and decomposition, and there seems to be no 
valid reason why tea should differ from other lierbs in this respect. 

These questions could be answered in a few years if tlie government 
were to secure, say 20 acres of land in a suitable locality, and plant a 
portion of it yearly with tea-plants until 10 or 12 acres were planted. 
Then, when the plants become sufticiently matui-ed, i)rovide a small lab- 
oratory, fitted with the necessary apparatus, and place it in charge of a 
comi^etent person who wouhl make su(;h experiments in the preparation 
of the leaf as might be suggested. This service need not cost more tlian 
$20,000 or $25,000; but it would require at least six years for its com- 
pletion. 

Doubts have been expressed as to the suitability of our soils and cli- 
mates to produce as good an article of tea as is produced in Asia. 
Practical cultivators are aware that soils and cliinites exert certain in- 
fluences upon vegetation ; but these influences are potent everywhere. 
Natural causes are not spasmodic in their operations. In a special re- 
port of the Department of Agriculture, issued in 1877, we find extracts 
from letters submitted by cultivators of the tea-plant in the United States, 
some of which are here inserted. 

Mr. Thomas M. Cox, Greenville, S. C, says: 

Dr. Jmiins Siuitli was probably the first person who introduced the tea-plant into 
South Carolina. He was, I think, a native of Massachusetts, and had a daughter 
married to a gentleman connected with the English naval service, and resided with 
her in the East Indies. From them he received the seed, and probably some of the 
plants. He was very successful, but is now deceased, and his plants, without protec- 
tioa, were lost. I obtained, in 1857 or 1858, from the Patent Office, a box of tea-plants. 
I gaA'e the most of them away, and retained a few myself. They have grown well 
without any protection, in the open air, and have attained a height of 8 or 10 feet. 
They have frequently matured the seed, and there are a number of the seed on the 
ground at this time. They are an evergreen in this climate, and are now in flower, 
with the seed of last year's growth fully matured upon the bush. I have never 
succeeded in making tea from the leaves, not knowing the process of manipulating 
them. 

Mr. J. J. Lucas, Society Hill, S. C, says : 

The tea-i)lant has been grown successfully in this State, Georgia, and Louisiaiux. Dr- 
Junius Smith, late of Greenville, S. C, planted it more extensively than any one else 
in this State, but concluded that labor was too cosily to make the culture protitable. 
Dr. ThomaiS Smith, of this place, and General Gillespie, of Cheraw, obtained a few 
plants about the same time that Dr. Junius Smith did, but did not attempt to nnike 
tea. General Gillespie's plants are still living and thriving. On the Middlctou 
place, Ashley River, near Charleston, tca-i)lants are now growing, for ornamental use 
only, and are 10 feet high. A gentleman in Georgia (says the Rural Candinian) 
obtained 441 pounds of tea from one acre of land, which, at 50 cents a pound, would 
bring .|220.50. Our average cotton-yield is about !jil5 ])er acre ; our best al)ont .$40. 

It is reconnnendcd to plant 5 by 5 feet, or l,7(i4 plants to the acre. Mrs. R. J. 
Screven, of Liberty County, Georgia, says the tea-plant thrives as high up as Athens, 
and is niorc^ liabh; to injury from heat than cold. The cditoi- of the Soil of the South, 



TKA-rri/rrFfK as a pkobarlk American industry. 15 

New Orleans, siiCfotMltMl so well tluit lu" was oflt'icd ijiLoO por iKtmid for his inakc of tea. 
Cotton is now, in price, below the cost of proilnetion, and we must try soiiiethinj; else. 

Dr. Turner Wilson, Windsor, N. C, says: 

I send yon a jtaekajje of tureen tea-leaves, hiossonis, and a few seed in the eapsnles 
I have no |)er.son that nnderstands cnrinn the leaves, l>ut will send a paekaj^e of the 
dried leaves, as I term them. I fre(inently drink a simi)le infnsion of the leaves dried 
in the shade (in the attie), and thonj>h not so good as the Chinese preparation, yet 
I know that I am drinking the piiir tea, without any coloring-nuitter like plaster of 
Paris or i)riissiate of iron. 

I have been raising the tea sinee IS.'js, but withont nineh cnitivation. My yard and 
garden are sandy soil, and the plants or bnshes, witiu)nt any cultivation, are of slow- 
growth. I iilant the seed about the 1st of April, but they eonie up under the bushes 
very thick from the fallen seed. Sonuitinu^s I throw a little dirt on the seed whicli I 
do not i>ick uj). I have several hundred plants under tlie bnsh(\s, from 4 to l> inches 
high, and abotit fifty in my front y.ird. I have never sold any .seeds or i)lants, but 
could d<» so. I have distributed them from Maryland to Texas in small <iuantities. 
The leaves may be jiicked in May, July, and September. The last any time before 
frost. The cost of i)ieking would be a mere tritle, as one hand could pick two or three 
bushels a day. 

The curing oftlie leaves should be done in copper i>ansofdirterent degrees of heat ; but 
as none of my family, exeept myself, drink tea, I put up with the inferior curing in 
iron pots and ovens, or stove-pans. Dry in the shade, and pack tight in boxes or Jars. 
The young tender leaves no doubt nnike the finest green teas ; the old, full-grown, and 
refuse leaves, the black tea. 

James H. Rion, Esq., Wiimsboio, S. C, says: 

I have no experience in the making of tea, but can certify to the adaptability of the 
soil and climate of my section to the growth of the plant itself. I live in Fairfield 
County, which is a little north of the center of the State. In the fall of 185l> I received 
from the Patent Otfice, Washington (of which the Agricultural Department is a part 
successor), a very tiny tea-plant, which I placed in my fiower-garden as a curiosity. 
It has grown well, has always been free from any disease, has had full outdoor expos- 
ure, and iittained its present height (5 feet 8 inches) in the year 18 «. Since then it 
ha-s been occasionally trimmed. The bush is like a ball resting on the ground, its 
breadth being equal to its height. It is continually producing perfect seeds, which 
readily germinate and produce healthy seedlings. The seeds are the size of small fil- 
berts. This shows that the plant finds itself entirely of home where it is growing. 
There cannot be the least doubt but that the tea-])lant will fiourish in South Carolina. 

Mr. II. I>. IIoLLiDAY, Valdosta, Ga., says: 

We have but two tea-plants, which have done well. They were brought to this 
l»laee by Sanuiel ^'arnadoe, now deceased, from Liberty County, Georgia. William 
Jones and Mrs. Rosa Screven, of Liberty Counly, are now raising tea, and I have just 
been told that it does well. Their post-otfice is Dorchester, Liberty County. Ga., via 
No. "2 Atlantic and Gulf Railroad. 

Mr. W. M. Ives, Jr., Lake City, Fla., says: 

The seeds of the tea-jilant were olitained from the Patent Otfice .iltoiit the year 1S')8. 
The ]ilants can be iwopagated either from seeils or slips. It is an evergreen shrub. I 
think \\\i^ years from seed, or three veal's from slii>s, would be as early as a ero)> of leaves 
could be taken. After that the croj) would increase annually. 

Its cnltivaticui might be nnide profitable, but our jieople do not pay enough attention 
to such objects as ])romise returns in future years. The method of drying the leaves is 
a very simple process. Many families already po.ssess a number of tea-jdants, but 
they grow them simi»ly tor their beauty and novelty. Tea can be grown in Georgia 



16 TEA-CULTURE AS A PROBABLE AMERICAN INDUSTRY. 

as well as in Florida. Wo should grow our owu tcsa, but wo do not, aud will uot, un- 
less something is done to promote an interest in the matter. 

Mr. Jambs S. Murdock, Charleston, S. C, says : 

I would also mention that the tea-plant is well suited to our climate. A gentleman 
at Georgetown, on our coast, writes me that ho has raised a large nuvuber of plants 
from the seed, and they are as thrifty and grow as well as our wild orange, the cold 
weather, which we have occasionally, producing no effect or. them. 

Dr. A. W. Thornton, Portland, Greg., says: 

Some years ago a capitalist, Mr. Sanuiel Braunan, started the cultivation of tea at 
Calistoga, in Napa County, California, but through some uiismanagement at the out- 
set the crop did not succeed. And as at that time capitalists could make their 3 per cent, 
a month in other enterprises, Mr. Braunan saw no money in it, and abandoned the 
enterprise. But to this day solitary plants can be seen in that locality, exhibiting vig- 
orous growth, proving the suitability of both soil and climate. Since that time a gen. 
tleman (name forgotten) started a plantation of tea at Modesto, in the foot-hills of the 
Sierra Nevada JNIountaius, Stanislaus County, California, in which the plats have done 
so well that from the last accounts he was so far encouraged as to extend liis planta- 
tion ; but as yet I have not heard of it as coming into the market as a finished article 
of commerce. 

With regard to Oregon aud Washington Territory, I am not aware that the experi- 
ment has been tried yet, although there are localities in Southern Oregon, about Jack, 
son County and the Rogue River country, and perhaps east of the Cascade Range, where 
the summers are Avarmer and the winters are colder and drier, in which the plant 
would flourish, though subject to a ground freeze in winter. In the Willamette Val- 
the Wistaria sinensis does well in the open air, but Fuchsias aud Salvia splcndeiis require 
to be taken into shelter in winter. 

That the tea-plant is admirably suited to Northern California and Southern Oregon 
I have no question ; more especially as the light on this coast is so abundantly charged 
with actinic rays, as shown by the richness of the foliage aud gorgeous tints of the 
fruits and autumnal foliage, supi)orts the view that any plant, the active principle of 
which is located in the leaves, would j>;v'hi« facie yield a richer product where actinic 
rays are abundant (which are known to have an important influence upon chlorophyl 
and leaf-development) than in less favored climes. 

That the moisture of Northern Oregon aud Washington Territory might give rank- 
ness to the leaf development inimical to the plant as a commercial product can only 
be proved by experiment, and, if so, might be sufficiently modifiod by a system of 
pinching back in summer and not pruning in winter or fall. 

I have not been sufticiently long in Oregon to form an opinion of the winters from 
actual experiment ; and the hearsay opinions of others are of very little value with 
respect to any special inquiry, the subject-matter of which they are unacquainted 
with, unless, indeed, they happen to be men of scientific education, capable of ap- 
preciating the value and influence of natural laws so far as at present developed. 

Mr. Arthur P. Ford, Charleston, S. C, says : 

About four or five years ago I obtained from a friend some seeds of the tea-plant, 
and planted them in my garden, twenty-one miles from Charleston, inland. The plants 
came up readily, were duly transplanted, and are now fine shrubs three feet high, and 
seven in number. The foliage is luxuriant; aud the plants bear the coldest weather 
here without any ill effects ; the mercury on more than one occasion marking 16° ; 
and the plants being encased in ice at other times also. 

Owing to my unavoidable absence during the past two summers, I have been unable 
to gather and pro])aro tlie leaves. 

I am satisfied that both tea and coffee plants would succeed in the South, aud it 
would be well if our planters could be induced to experiment with both. 



TEA-CULTURE AS A PROBABLE AMERICAN INDUSTRY. 17 

William Summer, Esq., Newberry County, South Carolina, says: 

There are several healthy, vigoroua tea-plauts growing iu Columbia; these plants 
have been cut back to keep them iu proper condition in the grounds where planted. 
I have seen at the Greenville residence of the late Hon. J. K. Poinsett the tea-plants 
growing linely, of those introduced by Dr. Junius Smith. And he remarked to me 
that we have hero the Olmfragtam (fragrant olive), with which we can llavor the tea 
equal to any prepared for the .special use of the Emperor of China. The fragrant olive 
blooms freely from early spring until mitlwinter, and the llowers, when gathered fresh 
and put in the caddy among the tea, impart a delightful aroma to the tea. I have at 
different times imported a few tea-plants from Angers, France, and these have been 
disseminated from the Pomaria nurseries, and found to succeed. I have no doubt of 
the success of the tea-plant in the middle and upper portions of this State. 

Col. S. D. Morgan, Nashville, Tenn., says : 

Of all the plants for the South Atlantic States, that of the Chinese or Japanese tea 
promises most success. Before the war I ha<l a few of the shrubs growing in a small 
parterre attached to my town dwelling, from which I obtained leaves as rich in aroma 
and " theine" as is to be found in tea from any country whatever. 

The shrub grows luxuriantly in Central Georgia— even 100 miles north of Augusta, 
to my personal knowledge— as I there used the domestic article for several weeks' time 
and found it excellent. There may, however, be a difficulty about its culture, for 
want of a very cheap class of laborers to pick and prepare the leaves. This, however, 
is a subject I have not investigated, but I think it is worthy of a thorough investiga- 
tion. 

Mrs. Mary J. Ives, Lake City, Fla., says : 

Your letter making inquiries in regard to the tea-plant has been received. 

My husband obtained the plants, through a friend, from the Department of Agri- 
culture at Washington, in the year 1858. They were then small plants, only a few 
inches in height. Now they are large shrubs. 

I have iised the leaves for making tea, and those who have tasted it have pronounced 
it of a very fine flavor. Am sorry that I have none on hand at present, that I might 
send you a sample. 

The plant is not at all ati'ected by cold weather, such as we have in this climate, 
blooms and bears seeds, and can bo propagated by cuttings as well as by the seed. By 
this mail I send you some seed. 

Miss M. C. McFajll, High Shoals, Anderson County, South Carolina, 
says : 

I take pleasure in informing you that I have a tea-idant which I have had fifteen 
years, and which was sent me by Col. J. D. Ashmore while he was in Congress. It 
has remained iu the center of the garden where it was originally planted, and has had 
no care or cultivation. Fifty plants, I suppose, could have been reset from the young 
seedlings sprung up beneath it from the fallen seeds, but I was afraid to disturb them. 
This year I have cured some of the leaves, and will send you a sample. I have had 
no one to show me how to prepare them. I have given away five pounds of the tea, 
and liave been using it in the family all the year. The plant is an evergreen, and 
stanils the winters perfectly well. It is 8 feet in height, 4 feet in diameter, and never 
has been pruned or trimmed. 

Mr. Alex. M. Forster, Georgetown, S. C, says : 

In reply to your letter received through Mr. Murdock, I will give you what little 
experienc4' I have had with f he tea-plant in lliis low country of South Carolina. 

The original plant I brought from Columbia, S. C. It is a genuine Then virkiiK, from 
seed, I think, produced from tlie tea-i>l:ints brought to this State some years since by 
2 TEA 



18 TEA-CULTURE AS A PROBABLE AMERICAN INDUSTRY. 

Dr. Junius Smith, and cultivated near Greenville. After my plant had attained the 
height of two or three feet, it began to bear flowers and seed. From these seeds, or 
nuts, I have now 50 or 60 plants of various sizes ; some of them bearing fruit also. I 
might have had 500 jilants as well as 50, so easily are they propagated and so abun- 
dantly do they bear seed. The only care necessary is to preserve the tap-root as care- 
fully as may bo in removing the young plants from the nursery-bed. My plants are 
in a rich, dry soil, and grow very rapidly, requiring only three or four years to reach 
the height of 4 feet. They are as thrifty and bear the vicissitudes of our climate as 
well as the native cassiua {Ilex cassvne). I have several times picked (in April) a 
quantity of the young leaves, and commenced the process of curing them according 
to the directions given by Mr. Fortune (see Agricultural Reports, 1853), but I have 
never had the jjerseverance to carry out fully the entire process, as it occupies hours 
to complete it, and requires the patience of a Chinaman ; yet I have made some fair 
black tea, better than umch that is said to have come from China and for which I 
have paid |1.25 per jiound. 

The Chinese method of curing tea is impossible in this country, where we can- 
not obtain labor at 5 to 10 cents per day ; yet some equivalent to this process is 
necessary to the production of tea, such as we drink it, for a decoction of the tea-leaves 
dried without this manipulation has little resemblance to the beverage we all so much 
appreciate. I am convinced that the slow rolling and pressing at certain intervals, 
and then the heating and rolling over and over before the final drying, are required to 
break the sap-vessels in the leaves, in order to produce in the juices, by contact with 
the air, a certain degree of fermentation necessary to bring out the flavor or develop 
the properties we find in the Chinese preparation. If there could be invented some 
machine to imitate this hand labor, to efi"ect the same slow process by means less ex- 
pensive than the human hand, I think that the cultivation of tea might become not 
only practicable, but profitable to a large portion of our Southern country. 

Eev. W. A. Meriwether, Columbia, S. C, says : 

I obtained a Chinese tea-plant from North Carolina nine years ago, and set it out ia 
open ground in a plat of Bermuda grass. It has received no cultivation, and is now 
a fine shrub, measuring to-day six and a half feet in height by nine feet across the 
branches at the base. The soil where it grows is light, sandy land, with no clay 
within two feet of the surface. 

The plant is not aff'ected by the severest cold to which oui' climate is subject. It 
was not the least injiu'cd by the intense cold of December, 1870, when my thermometer 
registered 1° above zero ; the coldest weather I have ever known in this latitude. 

My plant blooms from the latter part of August on to December, and makes a beau- 
tiful ornamental shrub. It is evergreen. I have obtained tea of the best quality 
from the cured leaves. The process of preparing the leaves for use is the same as that 
given in the Southern Cultivator, January number, 1872. There have been successful 
experiments made with this plant in Florida and in Georgia. That the climate of 
the Southern States is well suited to the cultivation of the tea-plant I think there can 
be no question. I sincerely hope you may succeed in your efforts to arouse our people 
to the importance of its cultivation. If only enough tea were made to supply the 
home demand, what an immense annual saving would result ! 

Hon. James Edward Calhoun, Trotter's Shoals, Savannah Eiver, 

S. C, says : 

At my last visit to Rio de Janeiro, a treatise on tea-culture, written in Portuguese, 
was presented me by the author, the priest-superintendent of the imperial botanic 
garden. 

On my return I was traveling in company with the governor toward Greenville dis- 
trict, when the death of Jiujius Smith was rumored. I urged the governor to deflect 
from his route to inspect the tea-plants, and, if it might be, in his official ojvpacity to 



TEA-CULTURE AS A PROBABLE AMERICAN INDUSTRY. 19 

assume the canying out the experiment instituted by Mr. Smith, promising, in such 
case, to make a translation of the treatise and send it to him. No steps, however, 
were taken in tliat direction. In acknowledging your communication, I renewed the 
promise to make the translation for your department. A prolonged, unsuccessful 
search among my papers for the treatise has been one cause of the delay of my answer. 

Few words will sufHice to detail my experience. Eighteen years ago some half- 
dozen tea-plants, bronght from China, were sent mo. I set them in what had been a 
strawberry-bed, in a soil friable, of medium quality, uniuanured. The war and its 
consequences supervening, I have contented myself with merely securing a supply of 
tea for my household. Nothing has been done beyond keeping down the weeds with 
the hoe. The plants have had no protection; but during a portion of the lirst sum- 
mer, seedlings have some shelter. As yet there has been no damage from blight or 
from insects. Frequently leaves are clipped in moderation from all parts of the bush, 
care being taken not to denude. They are parched in an iron vessel at the kitchen- 
fire, constantly stirred, and immediately afterward packed in air-tight boxes. To pre- 
pare them for infusion, they are ground in a coftee-mill. I inclose leaves plucked to- 
day, measuring from 3^ to 5 inches, and as you will perceive exhibiting three varie- 
ties. 

The capsules of the tea-nuts afford the most pleasant of bitters. They were saved 
and given to the matron, an item in her materia medica for my people, long before I 
heard that a physician in Georgia had carefully tested the " tea-hull," and found it to 
possess all the properties of the cinchona. 

The plants have buds, blooms, and fruit. As the latter drop, a portion are planted. 
The remainder are kept in brown sugar, and reserved for planting in mid-winter. 
They are ornamental and marvelously fecund. 

At the axil of every leaf there is a bud; often two, sometimes three buds. They 
would be invaluable to the apiarian. 

On the 12th of November frost stopped the blooming of cotton, but swarms of the 
honey-bee continued to visit the fresh blossoms of the tea-plants. Bumble-bees and 
yellow-jackets also present themselves. The latter, feeding differently from the oth- 
ers, fall to the ground gorged. 

This is the perfect climate for the tea-plant. 

Mr. S. I. Jones, Thoinasville, Ga., says : 

Your favor relative to the tea, its cultivation and preparation, has been received. 
Inclosed please find an article VTritten by my sister, Mrs. Screven, of Liberty County, 
Georgia, who has had some experience in tea-making, and has plants for sale. I have 
several hundred plants on ray farm near this place, and from which I make a good 
article for home use. I soon hope to have five acres set out. I prepare the tea sim- 
ilarly to Mrs. Screven. 

Mrs. R. J. Screven, Mcintosh, Liberty County, Ga., says : 

In response to your request for an account of the tea-plant, and also of the process 
of preparing the leaves, I herewith give you my experience. Mr. Robert Fortune, iu 
his "Two Visits to China," says: "The soil in which the tea-plant does best is mod- 
erately rich ; that is, it contains a considerable amount of vegetable matter, mixed 
with clay, sand, and particles of rock." My experience is that it does best in land 
somewhat low, but not such as water will lie upon or is overtiowed. I sow the seed 
in the fall, as soon as they ripen and drop from the bushes, in drills eighteen inches 
apart. They come up readily in the spring, and by winter are fnmi three to six inelu's 
high. Under the shade of some large tree is usually the place selected for sowing tbe 
seed, for if the plants are exposed to the hot sun while young, they invariably die the 
first summer. When six mcmths old they are ready for transplanting; have generally 
a gooil supply of roots, and can be set out any time from the lirst of November to the 
last of March. In putting them out, I have generally prepared holes to receive them, 
to give a good start, so that fine, healthy bushes will bo obtained. 



20 TEA-CULTURE AS A PROBABLE AMERICAN INDUSTRY. 

The holes are usually dug out a foot or more deep, and equally as wide, and filled in 
with half-rotted leaves, a little cow-pen manure and surface soil; all of this to be 
packed down to prevent water settling around the plants whenever it rains. The tea 
is planted ixp to its first leaves, and a little water given to press the earth close to the 
roots. As soon as the warm spring weather begins, each plant is shaded from the sun. 
A crutch, two feet out of the ground, is driven in on each side of the^lant, a strong 
stick placed across the crutches, and pine branches leaning upon this make a cheap 
and good shade. 

The tea, when young and not large enough to shade its own roots, is very sensitive 
to the heat of the sun. This shading being somewhat troublesome, I have adopted 
another plan. It is this: to set out the plants under the shade of some large bush or 
tree until they are about two feet high, then take them up carefully, cut off nearly all 
the tops, and jilant out in their permanent places. As soon as spring opens they 
will put out sufficient leaves to shade their own roots. In April, 1867, I think it was, 
Mr. Howard, from Baltimore, who has been engaged on a plantation for several years 
in the East, visited my father's plantation in this county. He expressed himself as 
surprised at the splendid growth of the tea. Being there at the time of gathering 
the young leaves, he plucked from one bush alone, prepared the tea himself, and took 
it on to Baltimore, where he had it tested and weighed. He wrote back that it had 
been pronounced stronger and of superior flavor to the imported, and that by calcula- 
tion he was satisfied that four hundred and fifty pounds of cured tea could be made 
here at the South to one acre of ground. 

Mr. Fortune, in writing of the tea-growing districts of China, states that at Hong- 
Hong, in summer, the maximum heat is 94° Fahrenheit, and the minimum 80°, while 
in winter the thermometer sometimes sinks as low as the freezing-point. At Shanghai 
the extremes of heat and cold are much greater. Here the thermometer sometimes 
indicates a temperature of 100° for several days successively in summer, and in winter 
frequently falls to twelve or twenty degrees below the freezing-point. 

MODE OF PREPARING. 

I have only pi'epared black tea, the process being very easy and simple. 

The leaves are gathered the day before they are to be dried, and spread thinly over 
tables to wilt. The small leaves are cured by themselves, as they make the most 
superior quality of tea. The day after being plucked, they are taken in the hands 
and rubbed until they become soft and flaccid. They are then placed in heaps and 
allowed to remain so for about one hour. They are then put into a Dutch oven, which 
is heated by a few coals under it. While in the oven they are constantly stirred with 
the hand to prevent scorching. They are roasted five minutes, taken out, and rolled 
again upon the table. After being rolled, they are exposed in the open air in the sun, 
and frequently stirred. While these are out in the air, another set is in the oven. 
When all have been roasted, those first put out in the air are brought in, and roasted 
again for five minutes, then taken out and rolled again. They are now placed in a 
sieve about an inch thick, and held over a few hot coals, stirring all the lime. They 
are then taken out and rolled again. This process of rolling and toasting is continued 
until the tea assumes a dark color. 

After all the leaves have been treated thus, they are put in a basket and hung over 
a few coals, and frequently stirred until the tea appears black and dry. Mr. Fortune, 
during his visit to China, "verified the opinion previously formed that black and 
green teas could bo produced from the same plant, and that the dissimilarity of ap- 
pearan(.'e, so far as color is concerned, depended only upon manipulation, " green tea 
being i)roduced by coloring black tea with a powd(>r of thre»^ i)aTts Prussian blue and 
four parts gj'i)sum, applied to the tea during the last process of roasting. I have 
several times received letters asking if I had the plant for sale from which the green 
tea was made, and as my authority was not suflicient to convince them that the same 



TEA-CULTURE AS A PROBABLE AMERICAN INDUSTRY. 21 

plant produces both black and green, I have quoted Mr. Fortune, whose botanical 
knowledge and learning cannot for one moment be doubted. 

Mr. J. W. Pearoe, Fayctteville, N. C, says : 

Voiir favor of October 27, in regard to the Chinese tea-plant, was received a few 
days ago. The original seeds were sent to me, about the year 1860 or 18U1, by Hon. 
Warren Wiuslow, then unMnber of Congress from this district. I gave the greater part 
of them to Mr. James M. Smith, a snccessful horticulturist of this vicinity, and kept 
the rest myself. We planted them iu light sandy land, and they have grown and 
flourished over since without any particular attention. 

iMy phiuts are now about five feet high, and very thick and bushy near the ground, 
covering a space as large as a nu)lasses hogshead ; have no protection from any kind 
of weather. The mercury has been as low as lO'^ below zero. They do not seem to 
sutler from drought, are ever green, and bear a beautiful white flower, with little scent 
until nearly ready to fall. The bees are very fond of the flowers. The seed are like 
the hazel-nut; have a hard shell and a bitter kernel, and take a long time to germi- 
nate. Hence it is better to plant them on the north side of a fence or house, where 
they will remain moist. They come up readily when left under the bushes where they 
have dropped. The ])]ants can then be set out successfully, care being taken to avoid 
breaking the long tap-root peculiar to them. My plants have never suffered from 
insects of any kind. Half a dozen plants furnish my family, of five or six persons, 
with more tea than we can use. We prepare it by heating the leaves in an oven until 
wilted, then squeeze them by hand until a juice is expressed from them, then dry them 
again in the oven. The tea is then quite fragrant and ready for use. It improves by 
age. We pick the leaves about three times during the year. The youuger the leaves 
the better the tea. I think it will grow in any ordinary soil, clay or sand. The seed 
should be planted about the month of January. 

I could select much more evidence as to the quality of tea produced 
by ordinary domestic processes, but it is sufficiently well ascertained 
that it is within the capacity of hundreds of thousands of people in this 
country to ^ow and prepare all the tea they require, leaving the ques- 
tion of its profitable commercial culture to be settled bj- practical test. 

Washington, B. C. 



•• Mr '08 




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